Motor vehicles including automobiles, sport utility vehicles, vans and pick-up trucks can be subject to a wide range of environmental conditions when parked or stored. For example, motor vehicles left in the sun can cause the seats, the steering wheel, the exterior paint and other surfaces to over heat thereby increasing the potential for degradation. Such sun baked surfaces can also become too hot to touch. In addition, the exterior surface of motor vehicles can become covered with snow, ice, leaves, dust, debris and other substances. Driving a motor vehicle that is covered with ice or snow, for example, can be dangerous or impractical. Some states have motor vehicle laws which prohibit motorists from driving with snow accumulated on top of the vehicle, so as not to become dislodged and fall onto oncoming vehicles. In certain climates and weather conditions, frost can form on windshields, windows and external mirrors when the motor vehicle is parked outside overnight. Motorists are therefore generally obligated to remove snow, ice and other debris in order to safely operate the motor vehicle. Removal of ice and snow, in particular, can be a time consuming and arduous task. For instance, removal of snow from hard to reach areas, such as the roof, of a motor vehicle can cause the motorist to become covered with snow. Moreover, the removal process tends to be more difficult in freezing cold weather and when it is snowing. The removal process can involve scraping or sweeping which can scratch windows, windshields, and painted surfaces. In addition, snow and ice can build up inside door locks and around windows and render them inoperable.
In order to protect motor vehicles from harsh environmental conditions such as snow, ice, and heat from the sun, motorists have covered their vehicles with various covering devices. For example, one-piece covers which envelop the entire motor vehicle have been used. Such covers are likely custom made to fit a particular vehicle and as a result can be rather expensive. Such expensive covers can be a target for thieves. Moreover, one-piece covers can be time consuming, cumbersome or inconvenient to install and remove, even without snow accumulated on them. For example, because of the size and shape of a one piece cover, wind can fill the cover much like a sail and blow the cover off before it can be secured. One piece covers can become even more difficult to remove when covered with snow because of the weight of the snow. For instance, a one piece cover can be peeled off the motor vehicle from one end of the motor vehicle to the other. However, when peeling off a one-piece cover coated with snow, much of the snow accumulated on the cover gets dumped back on another portion of the cover rather than removing the snow from the motor vehicle.
The bulkiness of one-piece covers can make them difficult to maneuver and as such can be dropped or dragged in mud while being removed. Moreover, the bulk of a one piece cover makes it difficult to store and an entire trunk of a motor vehicle may be consumed for storage of such a cover. One piece covers which envelop less than the entire vehicle may reduce the bulk but do not solve the problem stated above regarding removal when the cover is coated with snow.
Means of securing protective covers to motor vehicles have typically used of a plurality of fasteners. It can become time consuming to secure such a plurality of fasteners to various portions of a motor vehicle. One-piece covers have used an elastic material disposed around a peripheral edge of the cover to hold the cover in place. However, the elastic material can cause the peripheral edge of the cover to contract to a size smaller than the circumference of the motor vehicle when the cover is not installed. This requires the elastic to be stretched out over the motor vehicle during installation. Such a stretching action can be awkward and several attempts may be required to properly install the cover. Other covers use a strap which extends from one side of the cover, under the motor vehicle to the other side of the cover. Installation of such a cover would likely require the motorist to squat down to reach under the motor vehicle.
There is a need to provide a protective cover for motor vehicles which can more effectively be installed and removed; which is adjustable for use on motor vehicles of various sizes and which can be more effectively secured on the motor vehicle. Prior art methods and systems for addressing these needs were either too expensive, inefficient, or ineffective or a combination of all of these. Based on the foregoing, it is the general object of the present invention to improve upon or overcome the problems and drawbacks of the prior art.